All Policy articles – Page 3
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NewsLabour would scrap pensions tax cap to boost NHS staff
On the go: Labour’s shadow Health and Social Care secretary, Wes Streeting, has pledged to do away with the cap above which NHS workers incur additional tax burdens, in a bid to dissuade experienced staff from retiring.
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NewsTriple lock, NHS and merging regulators on Liz Truss’s agenda
The new prime minister faces a host of economic problems, ranging from the cost of living crisis to the staffing crisis in the NHS as she enters Number 10, industry experts have said, with all eyes on the government’s forthcoming “fiscal event”.
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NewsBT, Ford and M&S schemes consider appealing against RPI judgment
On the go: The trustees of the BT, Ford and Marks and Spencer schemes are considering whether to appeal against the judgment handed down by the High Court, which struck down their judicial review against the government’s plans to axe the retail price index.
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News‘Millions to lose out’ as court rejects RPI reform appeal
Industry commentators have warned that millions of pensioners stand to “lose out” after the High Court rejected a judicial review, brought by some of the country’s largest defined benefit schemes, against the government’s plans to replace the retail price index with the consumer price index including housing.
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NewsStrikes ‘likely’ over TfL pension changes as funding deal reached
Changes to the TfL Pension Fund will be required as part of a financial support package agreed between the government, Transport for London and the mayor of London, with a plan to be presented in September. But unions have rejected the deal, and warned that more strikes are “likely”.
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NewsLGPS calls for ‘future-proofing’ benefits against discrimination
On the go: The chair of the Local Government Pension Scheme Advisory Board, councillor Roger Phillips, has written to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities asking for reforms to discriminatory death and survivor benefits in the LGPS, and to protect the scheme against future legal challenges.
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News‘Disingenuous’ pension proposals will not fix NHS staffing crisis
The government’s proposed pension rules tweaks around “retire and return” for some NHS Pension Scheme members, in a bid to tackle the mounting staff retention crisis, have been criticised by commentators who argue that the changes do not go far enough.
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NewsCivil service union issues strike ultimatum
The Public and Commercial Services Union has threatened the government with strikes in the civil service unless it accedes to demands for improved pay, pensions and job security.
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NewsFirefighters’ options exercise requires ‘corrective action’
On the go: “Corrective action” is required for certain members of the Firefighters’ Pension Scheme, after a number of Fire and Rescue Authorities failed to conduct an options exercise properly.
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NewsPPI: More data needed on ethnic groups’ retirement outcomes
On the go: While it is known that people from Pakistani, Bangladeshi, black, and other minority ethnic groups suffer poorer retirement outcomes than the white majority of savers, the data collected does not allow us to properly examine why that is the case, according to the Pensions Policy Institute.
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NewsOmbudsman to speed up state pension age investigation
On the go: The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman is to adjust its approach to the remainder of its investigation into failures by the Department for Work and Pensions relating to changes to women’s state pension age, so it can “conclude the investigation as efficiently as possible”, having shared its preliminary views with interested parties.
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NewsGovt to change civil servants’ early pensions access
The government has proposed to change the rules around early access to pensions in the civil service, tracking 10 years behind state pension age, according to a new consultation over reforms to the Civil Service Compensation Scheme.
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NewsTransfer volumes could hit £600bn as insurers post strong results
A host of insurers have revealed their first-half 2022 results that show a booming trade in risk transfers, which, by some projections, could hit £600bn over the next decade — though there are fears about a capacity crunch in the sector.
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NewsFBU receives more than 750 ‘immediate detriment’ claims
On the go: The Fire Brigades Union has received more than 750 ‘immediate detriment’ claims since June 6, despite being told by the Fire Chiefs’ Council that it should hold off applying immediate detriment until legislation is introduced next year.
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NewsGovt rejects appeal to make NHS scheme tax-unregistered
The government has rejected a petition to make the NHS pension scheme tax-unregistered, arguing that the loss of tax-relief and lump sums “would not benefit the vast majority of members”.
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NewsCalls for stewardship code to engage members as well as managers
On the go: The Financial Reporting Council’s stewardship code must “look both ways” and engage members as well as asset managers in developing guidance and standards, according to fintech company Tumelo.
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NewsPublic sector retirees face higher exit payment scrutiny
Substantial exit payments resulting from pension strain arrangements in the public sector will likely see people nearing retirement having their cases referred to HM Treasury, under a proposed new regime.
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NewsScams action group gets six-figure budget to tackle fraud
On the go: The Pension Scams Action Group, a renamed and revamped Project Bloom, is to get a six-figure budget to tackle scams across the next year, with the prospect of more to come.
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NewsGovt to consult on further LGPS McCloud regulations in 2023
On the go: The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities is to consult on further regulations governing the application of the McCloud remedy to the Local Government Pension Scheme.
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NewsTruss hints at doctors’ pension fix
On the go: Conservative party leadership candidate Liz Truss has said she will “sort out” the problems with doctors’ pensions in a bid to tackle the staff retention crisis, though she has not yet said how she would go about doing this.